Braiding machine



May 27A, 1924. l 1,495,793

A. PETERSEN BRAIDING MACHINE Original Filed Jan. 3, i921 Wij/72mm Patented May27, 1924.

UNITED srafiasv Parlant lorries.

ANKER Pnrnnsnn, on WINTHRCP, M assACnusnT'is, AssrGNoi-t 'ro AMERICAN WIRE- MOLD COMPANY, or HARTFORD, CoNNECTrCUna Coaroaarroia or CoNNECTrCUT.

r'BRAIDI1\TG MACHINE.,

Application nieu January 3, 1921, serial no. aaa-iis; vRenewed..i'ieeemim 2o, 1923.

To all whom t may concern: v

Be it knoWn that I, ANKER PETERSEN, citizen ofthe United Statesof America, and resident of Ninthrop, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in Braiding Machines, vof Which the followin is a spec-iiication.v 7 his invention relates to braiding machines, and more particularly to an Vexpansible condenser or die for equalizing the tension of the individual strands Jforming the braid. While the device forming the subject-matter of the presentv invention is Well-adapted for use in connection With various types o braiding machines, it is herein illustrated as applied to a machineA of the general type disclosed in the patent to Petersens No. 1,331,672, February 24, 1920,

to Which patent reference may be' had for i a fuller disclosure of the details of such a braiding machine.

In braiding machines as commonly cony striicted, the individual strands for forming the braid are supplied from carriers which are so moved relative one to anothery as to intertwine or braid the strands at the forming point. Usually each carrier is furnished with a tension device for its strand, and the completed braid isdravvn oft' from the forming point by a take-up arrangement that applies the desired tension to the braid.

With 'this arrangement the tension of each strand Within the finished braid depends upon the action of the individual tension devices 0n their respective strands, and there is no certainty that all the strands will pass into the braid under equal tension. If variations occur in -the tension of the strands forming a piece of braid, each strand Will not impart its proportionate amount of. strength to the braid, as the entire strain Will fall upon the taut strands and not upon the slack ones.

Thevprimary object of the present invention, therefore, is to so improve a braiding machine, and more especiallytheiorming Y die or condenser employed therein, as to overcome the detects heretofore experienced and thus producebraid having `each otits strands under substantially equal tension and available forsupporting its proportionate part of the load to which the braid may be subjected. Y Y

VAs one mode of attaining this object, the device vdisclosed in the accompanying drawings may be employed, and in which Fig. 1 is a partial transverse vertical section of a braidingmachine'of usual form, illustrating the invention as applied therethe subject matter of this invention;

Fig. 4 is a horizontal cross section of such arbor takenon the line a-b of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a very much enlarged, fragmentary cross section similar? to Fig.` 4, il-

lustrating `further details of construction,

and;

Fig. 6 is a diagrammatic vievv to large scaleillustrative of the general mode of operation of the Idevice ,of the present invention.

The main lframe ,of the machine is pro- ,vided With a bracket member 1 having a central 'hub portion "2. Within the opening in Ythe hub portion 2 is fixed a hollow shaft .or spindle 3,.v A .sleeve 4 surrounds the spindle 3 andturns Jfreely thereon.` Secured upon the sleeve A4 by means or a key or in other suitable manner is a bevel gear 5 which rests upon. the upper ends of the hub 2. 7 is driving ,shaft mounted in a. bracket 8 vof the frame andv having fixed thereon a pinion 10 which meshes with the .bevel -gear 5 for driving the same.

Y k K Upon the .sleeve 4 above the gear 5 is journaled to turn anrevolving frame 11 which supports the outer seriesbt carriers and the lstrand guides not shovvn. The frame 11 is lprovided ivitha bevel gear 12 which also meshes with the pinion 10p, the arrangement beingsuchthatthe frame- 11 and the gear 5, turn in opposite directions.l Fast upon the sleeve 4 above the frame 11 is. the circularplate ,1 3 which carries in suitable V bearl braid Amay be drawn Offas for ings a series of thread-carrier drive rolls 17. Secured to the drive roll 17 is a riction roll V2O which engages a flexibly ksupported drive element 21a carried by a supporting dislrl Jastupon the upper end of the fixedV spindle 3.v y v The parts as thus far described are such as are common to 'braiding machines of a well known commerical type and it isthere'- tore unnecessary to describe theinherein`v in greater detail. y Y i Secured within thevupperend of the hollow spindle 3 in any desired manner, as by friction or'positive holding means. is the braiding die'or condenser This die comprises a substantially cylindricalsleeveflike body 31 having reduced diameters 32er@ 3?; at itsfopposite ends/:f VThe die is provided with an axial bore 34 through tle radial slot 35v extends outwardlyxtroin they bore 3.4 tothe outer Surface. ef, the die, sich slot being ofV a Widthsubstantially .equal baie-1a@ membra man Haine within 'th slot 35 and provided upon its iner edge an arcuate groove 38, the curvature* of which is substantially like that yof the inner wall of the bore 34.. The outer edge of the blade 37 has projecting therefrom a pair ot lugs 39,40, such lugs upon their adjacent sides overhanging to form the Yhook'like elements 41, 42, respectively. A bow spring 43 is arranged with its opposite @nd Seated beneath its memberstl 4.2-, and with its central portion projecting out be yond the plane of the outer faces of the lugs 39, 40. Y Upon thel reduced portOIl 32 or the cylindrical body is secureda cap 44 vwhich may be retained in position by a yset screw for inA other desired manner.. The'outerffa'ce of the cap 44 provides ya substantially spherical surface 48surrounding a central Aopening or bore 49, such bore being of sub-r stantially larger i diameter than "fthel bore ot the body portion 31. The l,surface 48 serves to guide the s trandswhich merge Afrom the various thread carriers toward the bore 49, which latter constitutes the braiding o r .forming point v of the machine. A collar 46 surrounds "the reduced portion 33 of the'b'ody and may also be secured in place bv a set screw. f

The blade 37 extends .Somewhat beyond the lugs 39, 40,V as indicated at V45, 47,.i'6- spectively, and. such extended portions are arranged to,V lie within thecap44andeol lar 46n respectively. The outer faeQSothe AVlugs 39, 40 are"substantiL- llyr and ar and engage the edges of the capan'd'col t y thin th Slat thus thebladesis ,.retai@ W but is permitted to fhave j in a radial direction .the

condensery as thus formed'is' sli "lo p to" restrict and toY a certain ext-entl obstruct the bore 34.

S, S indicate the individual strands of Y yarn passing'iirom the several carriers of the"v two series-"and which merge andintertwine at the braiding` point. The finished braid isindicated at B, such braid passing down through'the hollow spindle after emerging yfrom the lower end ot the die 30, Yand passing to Va `suitable taleupn device whereby thedrawing ott tension is Y A simple form of such applied thereto. taire-up i device is diagrammatically indi# 'cated in Eig, l wherein'T is one yot-a pair of' nsasa'rolls' teeivins' its! motion', tron' af sha'f't""T and p between vwhich vro'llsfthe braidw may passf While'` this :form "of'taleup is hereinVV indicated as suitable for the purpose,` it is to be /unders or tension 1*.evice'a-nd that any otherlan'd usual yform might be employed. i j' Inthe operation of'the'dev,cethefvariv ous strands passing from Ythecarriers come togetherat the center of the machine where they lie upon the surface 48and then passV downwardly into the bore 49 in thecap VHthin such-bore the several strandsvinterunder less tension than the strands X and Y. i 'Thus atthel braiding point suchstrand may form a bight or slaclrl'oop 50 a'ndxif directly braided into the. material infsuch condition such slack strand Vwould 'fail to carry' its due share Yot ltbe load when Vthe braid is' subiectedto tension. the employment 'of Vthe resiliently movablebla'de 37,' however, the borey 34is constricted. to

Va cert-ain extent whereby the braid in passing therethrough vis compressed, which r'e- VSlts-.ijn 'the pushing or'strippingy back of any' .suchfl'oose bight 'as indicated at` A50.

bight is therebyprevented from. enteringvinto thecompleted braid as the'latter is drawnA off aiidfthus .each strand of v`the sin proper @man to l. er Share? .Of rfiyload t0 aidm"ymbesubjected i s 'happens' 'that slubs or v .Cvl'tllttitisY merely illustrative of one form o Y take-up abnormal bunches in the braid, or yarn.

Although in Fig. 6 a three strand braid has been illustrated for the sake of clearness in illustration, it Vis understood that the machine herein disclosed is intended for making braid having a large number of strands as for example 32, although the present invention is not in any manner restricted to the use with such a form of machine but may be found of general utility in any braiding machine to which it may be applied.

Having thus described the invention in a preferred form of the same ,together with the mode of operation thereof,`what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. A braiding die for braiding machines comprising a substantially cylindrical body portion having an axial bore for the passage of braid, and a radial slot intersecting said bore, an elongated blade member loosely engaging said slot, said blade member having an arcuate groove along its inner edge for contact with the peripheral surface of the braid and a pair of lugs upon its outer edge, and a bow spring engaging said lugs whereby resiliently to urge said blade toward the braid.

2. A braiding machine comprising a hollow spindle, series of braiding carriers revolvable about said spindle forming a braid, and a braiding die or condenser seated within said spindle and having a cap at its upper end provided with an opening constituting the braiding point, said die having an axial bore aligned with said opening for the passage of the braid, a member movable into said bore for obstructing the free passage of braid therethrough,y and a spring for resiliently urging said member inwardly, said spring reacting against the inner wall of said spindle.

3. A braiding die for braiding machines comprising a cylindrical body having an axial bore, said body having portions of reduced diameter at its ends and having a radial slot extending from end to end, a blade member loosely vengaging' said slot, lugs outstanding from the outer edge of said blade member adjacent to its ends,.a collar engaging the reduced portion of said body at one end, and a cap engaging the reduced portion of said body at the other end, said cap having a central opening aligning with the bore in the body and constituting the braiding point, said collar and cap overlying the respective ends of said blade beyond the lugs thereon for retaining Athe same within the slot.

4. In .combination with a'braiding machine having a plurality of thread carriers and means for moving the carriers to cause the strands to braid together as they approach the braid forming point, a braid embracing die supported adjacent the braid forming point and having a channel for the passage of the braid therethrough and a" slot extending outwardly from the channel, a blade mounted in said slot `for movement toward and from the channel, andyielding means for urging the blade inwardly toward the channel to restrict the channel and thereby retard the passage of slack strands of the braid through the die.

5. In combination with a braiding machine having a plurality of strand carriers and means for movingV the carriers to cause the strands to braid together as they approach the braid forming point, a cylindrical die v supported adjacent said braid forming point and having achannel for the passage of round braid therethrough7 movable means for restricting said channel and having an arcuate face that engages the braid to retard the passage of slack strands of the braid therethrough, and a Spring for urging the movable means into initimate engagement with the braid.

6. In combination with a braidingmachine having La hollow spindle through which the completed braid passes, a cylindrical die mounted within said spindle and having a channel for the passage of round y braid, movable means Vfor restricting said channel to retard the passage of slack strands of the braid therethrough, and a spring confined between the inner wall of said spindle and said mea-ns for urging the movable means into intimater engagement with the braid.

7 In combination with a braiding mai 

